Syndicate Bank Officers´ Association (SBOA) was formed
by a few of officers/executives in August 1973 and was registered in October 1973.
But in the initial years it could not function as an effective trade union as
it lacked credible leadership who could unite the officers under one banner and
lead the movement. The Officers in general were subjected to
harassment/victimization and lot of injustice. The officers were not eligible
for any perquisites / benefits other than the monthly salary paid to them.
There was nobody to protect them or to take-up their grievances. The Employees Union which was recognized by
the Bank was mute spectator, though most of the clerical promotees had
continued their membership in the workmen union even after their promotion.

Under these circumstances Com. H.R. Shenoy, Com. K.S. Shetty, Com.D.S.Punja, Com. P.K. Bhat
& many others decided to join the existing SBOA enmasse and to change the leadership. Accordingly, in the historic
conference held in Delhi during 1980 a new team of office-bearers
consisting of young officers were elected under the leadership of Com. H.R.
Shenoy and since then the Association commenced its functioning in the true
trade-union principles. The story of the Association since then, has been a
story of struggle and sacrifices and also of continued and remarkable
improvement in the service conditions of the officers over the years. Among the
various action programmes / agitations carried out by the Association, the
following will remain as inspiration to the posterity.

1982 - GHERAO OF BOARD MEETING

In Mumbai though quarter´s facility was sanctioned, the officers were not getting flats on
rental basis in those days. Therefore an agitation was launched to get the quarter´ s premises purchased by the bank under
the leadership of Com. K.S. Shetty which culminated in gheroing the board-meeting which was held in Mumbai in 1982.
Finally the then Chairman & Managing Director Sri. R. Raghupathy came out of the Board-Room and assured the demonstrators that quick steps would
be taken for purchasing the flats and accordingly sanctioned Rs.5.00 crores in the same Board Meeting. Thus the bank
acquired several flats in Mumbai where officers are getting quarters facility sanctioned on the first day of joining Mumbai branch/office.

1987 - MANIPAL CHALO

In 1987 the Bank came out with ´ ZERO TRANSFE POLICY´
whereby all those officers who had completed a term outside their home state,
were denied transfers back to their home state, though they were eligible for
the same as per the Transfer Policy. The management which declared it as an
austerity measure, had at the same time, indulged in many wasteful expenditure.
There was already disenchantment among the members as the management had failed
to identify vacancies for promotion for the years 1986 and 1987. The efforts of
the Association to resolve the issue amicably did not yield any result. The
Association was left with no alternative but to launch an agitation. Beginning
with withdrawal of all co-operation and work-to-rule, followed by Dharna at all
Administrative offices, the agitation culminated in a Dharna in front of the
Head Office at Manipal from 2nd to 4th June 1987. Those
days the Chairman & Managing Director and all the General Managers of the
Bank were sitting at Head Office at
Manipal as all the Departments of the Bank were functioning at Head Office and
there was no separate Corporate Office at Bangalore.

Over 600 officers from all over the country converged
at Manipal on 2nd June, 1987 to participate in the Dharna. The Management tried
to get an injunction from the Court to restrain the Dharna, but the Court
rejected the appeal. The management filed a complaint to the Police against the
participants and gave a list of 15 top leaders of the Association with an
appeal to arrest them on their arrival at Udupi, but the police were not
convinced enough. However, truckloads of police were brought from all over the
state and Head Office was handed over to them. Hundreds of armed policemen
surrounded the Head Office building and hundreds of them took position in
different floors and the terrace. But the efforts of the Management to
terrorize and bully the officers proved futile, as the participants, in exhibition
of courage of conviction and supreme loyalty, continued the Dharna notwithstanding
even the scorching sun and the intermittent torrential rains. Functioning of Head
Office was brought to standstill and Manipal branch was totally closed.

In an attempt to terrorize the agitating officers,
management suspended Com. D.S.Punja and Com. Jayaram Kamath of Manipal Branch
and transferred many office bearers and hundreds of activists in different
zones with immediate relief. The highhanded actions of the management provoked
the officers further and in many zones the working was brought to a grinding
halt. Com. M.U.Pai and Com.C P Nambiar, the then President and EC member
respectively, went on ´ Indefinite Hunger Strike´ from 8th June,
1987. At this stage, Com. R.N.Godbole, General Secretary,AIBOC intervened and compelled
the management to negotiate and settle the issues. Accordingly, Com. D.S.Punja
and Com. Jayaram Kamath, who were suspended, were re-instated in the same
branch; all victimization transfers of officers
during the course of agitation were cancelled; requests for transfer
after completion of three years outside home state were conceded and vacancies for promotion in different scales
for the years 1986 and 1987 were declared.

1990 - SAVE SYNDICATE BANK

When SBOA became very strong and vibrant Organization, the management could not tolerate as the Association
was an impediment to the management wanting to indulge in large scale
corruption. They wanted to see that the Association suddenly collapses and they wanted union-free situation in the
bank, so that they can do anything as per their whims & fancies. Therefore
they attempted to divide the officers´ unity by tempting/luring some of the
office-bearers and succeeded in their design.A joint-meeting was scheduled in February 1990 with the management and
the meeting was a total failure. Some of the office-bearers did not participate in the said joint-meeting as they were
conniving with the management.

Subsequently, the management unilaterally stopped remitting to the Association, the subscription
collected by them from the members through check-off system; discontinued
various facilities extended to the officers and also to the Association and debited
huge amounts to the SB A/c. of the Association in the name of telephone bills
and other facilities earlier extended to the Association as a part of its
recognition. The workmen union also joined hands with the management with an ulterior motive of mobilizing
officers´ membership to their union.

With the adverse conditions created by the management, the Association had no other option but
to resort to agitational path in March 1990. Countrywide Dharna was held on 21.03.1990. In Mumbai more than 600 officers gathered for the Dharna in front
of Reserve Bank of India.It was followed by a Dharna in front of the Banking Department, Ministry of
Finance at New Delhi on 26.03.1990 in which hundreds of activists from all over the country
participated. The Management further provoked the Association by suspending two
of its important functionaries namely Com. K.S. Shetty, then Secretary and Com.
P.K. Bhat, then Joint Secretary which resulted in spontaneous shutters-down
strike of all the branches/offices in Mumbai Zone for continuous 3 days and
continuous Dharna / demonstration before the Zonal Office of the Bank in Mumbai.

The message spread all over the country and different zones went on flash strike to lodge
their protest. The management went on
further provoking the officers by suspending dozens of activists/office-bearers
from different parts of the country viz. Comrades U.V.Dakshinamoorthy,
S.B.Patwardhan, Sunil S.Parate, A.Vishwanath Rao, K.Gopalkrishna Rao,
Vitthaldas S. Pai, Allwyn D'Souza and K.Ahmed from Mumbai, Com. Debabrata
Rakshit, Inderjeet Kumar Mitra and S.C.Das from Kolkata, Com.K.Ravindra Kamath and Com.S.K.Paniadi from Udupi, etc besides summarily dismissing, then a Mumbai
Zonal Council functionary and the presentPresident Com. H.V. Coelho. A few officers were also arrested by the Police at
the behest of the management who even resorted to filing FIR against the
agitating officers. In an unprecedented decision Hon´ble Sessions Court of
Mumbai granted anticipatory bail for all the 568 members of the Association in
Mumbai. Malafide cross country transfer orders to nook and corner of the
country were issued to a large number of activists, including ladies, all over
the country particularly targeting Mumbai and Manipal officers. On the very
next day of all India strike on 25th April 1990 these orders were executed
/issued and relieved instantly by putting notice on Bank´s notice board. These senseless acts of the management shocked
the entire officers´ community in the bank and hence they resorted to different
types of agitational programme all over the country.

During the period of agitation the Personnel Department of the bank was shifted to Mumbai City
and they were housed in President Hotel in Cuffe Parade situated near the
bank´ s Zonal Office. From there the
management issued mass transfer orders / charge sheets / wage cut notices apart
from using Police force to terrorize the officers. They also used CBI in an effort to frighten
the Mumbai office bearers. The officers / activists bravely faced all the
brutal acts of the management and they did not surrender, on the contrary their
level of commitment / determination increased. They mentally prepared for facing any situation. It was like a do or die situation.

The Association continued to fight even though the officers were subjected to lot of
hardships. Several Writ Petitions were filed in different High Courts. In a few
cases the officers got temporary relief. But the judiciary was not supportive of trade union activities by the
bank officers. However, the Association could ensure issuing of marching orders to the then Chairman & Managing
Director who was main cause for the agitation, through political intervention.

1999 - AGITATION FOR DIGNITY & SELF RESPECT OF OFFICERS
AND FOR RESTORATION OF AGREED POLICIES

In 1999 the Association
had to once again resort to the agitation. The managers were pressurized to
entertain dubious proposals / take over of NPAs from other banks and those who
did not relent were humiliated. There was a move to sell Syndicate Institute of
Bank Management (SIBM), the Bank´s prestigious apex training institute at
Manipal, with its large campus, to private parties for a paltry sum. All the
policies such as Promotion Policy and Transfer Policy were thrown to the wind.
All this led to large scale resentment from the officers and the Association
had to resort to an Agitation in 1999 for restoration of the agreed policies
and for the cause of dignity and self respect of the officers. In retaliation,
the management victimized the office bearers and the activists through instant
transfer orders and immediate relief to remote inaccessible branches. In order
to dither the leaders, vigilance raids were conducted on them. The then CMD,
even went to the extent of filing FIR against Com. D.S.Punja, the then Vice President
of the Association alleging threat from
him to his life. He was subjected to further harassment by intimidation transfer to a remote rural branch as its head. But the
Association did not relent and ultimately the said CMD functioned from KMC Manipal
Hospital bed nearly for two weeks and opted to go out of Syndicate Bank.

Thus, over the years many officers have faced mass transfers, charge sheets, suspensions,
summary dismissals and police actions for carrying out legitimate trade union
activities under the banner of SBOA. But officers / activists have bravely
faced all the brutal acts of the management and they have never surrendered, on
the contrary their level of commitment / determination has only increased
and turned Syndicate Bank Officers´ Association
into an active and vibrant organization. Today SBOA is a monolith having nearly
95% officers of the Bank as its members inclusive of JMGS–I to the level of
General Managers.

The Association is a recognized trade union of the officers in the Bank and is a sole
bargaining agent for them. Over the period several structured periodical Joint
Meetings have been held between the Association and the Management apart from
number of Small Committee Meetings, consultations and other interactions. It is
due to this bilateral process that several policy and systems could be put into
place which have greatly benefited the officers and also the Bank. A Transfer
Policy is evolved taking into account the institutional need for mobility and
at the same time with least inconvenience to the officers. Promotion Policies
are finalized mutually taking into account the aspirations of officers, need
for career progression and at the same time identifying the best possible
people within the frame work. Similarly quarters facility was extended at
different places in a phased manner and today it covers every officer working
anywhere in the Bank. Other facilities obtained for the officers include
reimbursement of expenses incurred towards conveyance, entertainment,
telephone, cleaning materials, news paper, etc. and different type of loan
schemes to name a few. These positive developments have their ramifications on
the institution and the dedicated service of the officers of the bank is a
vital contribution in making it possible for the Bank to transform itself from
Pigmy to the Giant.

While differences with the Management is inevitable in labour relations, when it came
to the Institution and its interest there has always been convergence of views.
In 1992 when stock scam broke over the nation and had its impact on
SyndicateBank also, the Association along with the workmen union formed a
Co-ordination Committee and discussed with the management the ways and means to
bring the Institution out of crisis. In 1993 when due to change of income recognition norms and other factors,
the Bank had to show the highest ever loss of Rs.671 Crores, the Association
came forward to sign a Joint Appeal with the Management and the workmen union
to bring the Institution out of the adverse position. The appeal had its impact
and the Bank slowly recovered and progressed to gain inherent strength. As a
responsible trade union, the Association has been motivating the officers, from
time to time, to contribute their best for the growth of the Bank.

SBOA AND FORMATION OF AIBOC & AINBOF

Syndicate Bank Officers´ Association had been one of the militant affiliates of AICOBOO. But when
the leadership of AICOBOO was found drifting away from the set objectives and
lacked democratic functioning, Syndicate Bank Officers´ Association played an
important role, along with the officers´ associations in ten other banks, in
forming All India Bank Officers´ Confederation (AIBOC) in 1985. Today, AIBOC is
the largest trade union of the supervisory cadre in Asia.
Once again, Syndicate Bank Officers´ Association played an important role in
forming All India Nationalized Banks Officers´ Federation (AINBOF), as a wing of
AIBOC to take up the issues of officers of nationalized banks in 2009.
It is history that it was due to the bold step taken by Com.K.S.Shetty, (then
General Secretary of SBOA and AINBOF) as President of AIBOC, to sign the MOU
with IBA on 27.11.2009, the long pending demand of second option for pension
for bank employees and officers could be a realized. Syndicate bank Officers´
Association continues to be one of the militant affiliates of AIBOC and AINBOF.

WELFARE SCHEMES FOR THE MEMBERS

Apart from continuously striving for improvement in the service conditions and welfare
measures for officers, the Association has also put into place its own welfare
measures for its members. The Benevolent Fund of the Association pays Rs.75000/-
to the family of every member dying in harness. While celebrating its Silver Jubilee in the year 1999, the Association
has instituted different merit awards for the wards of the members who score
high marks in standard X and XII. The Association has also evolved a Scheme for
reimbursement of hospitalization expenses of members and their spouse over and
above the reimbursement by the Bank and also to present memento on superannuation
of members, etc.

FORMATION OF SYNDICATE BANK PENSIONERS´ & RETIREES ASSOCIATION

The Association has also formed an organization for the retirees the ‘Syndicate Bank Pensioners
and Retirees Association’(SBPRA) in June 2012 to organize the retirees and to
redress their grievances. The membership is open to all the retirees
irrespective of the cadre they belonged to prior to their retirement. It is
affiliated to All India Bank Pensioners and Retirees Association (AIBPARA) a
wing of AIBOC. Within a short period the Association has received pan India
presence with retires from all the part of the country joining as members.

Association
looks at itself as an instrument to ensure justice and fairness to its members
and thereby bond the officers to the institutional goals. It is a fact in
history that the Association having an enlightened membership of nearly 10000
officers has always stood by the Bank and its members. We believe that a strong
organization for ourselves is possible only in a strong institution. All our
actions are guided by this vision.